My Darling, My Dearest

Chapter 148

Rachel was already near the balcony when she hesitated. She was about to excuse herself and ask for help, but she heard a man talking in clipped sentences. His faint voice was carried across the foyer by the night wind.

He struck her as familiar. Her head tipped to the side, trying to put a face to the voice.

As luck would have it, the corridor was overlaid with plush carpet cushioning her steps.

The people did not notice her. Confusion turned into delight when she realized to whom the masculine voice belonged to. It was from Jack! She was elated and took a step forward.

"How come you suddenly fell in love with her?"

Rachel froze. She recognized that the second voice belonged to Brad. From her location, it was impossible not to listen. "I think she is the right one," Jack said after a few seconds.

"The right one? You mean as a wife?"

She eavesdropped like a thief, despite the instincts that warned her against spying. Rachel stood still and barely breathed. She was looking forward to his response.

'Jack thinks I am a suitable wife? Does he have a crush on me?' Everything around her moved in slow motion, as though the passing of time was suspended.

'Just like I have a crush on him?1

All she could hear was her heart pounding.

Her palms were already sweating when Jack finally spoke. "Let's go back. She's taking too long, I will see what she's up to."

In a daze, Rachel turned swiftly and scurried for the hallway.

But she didn't go too far. She retreated to a corner and then walked out as if she just arrived.

"There you are! I thought you were lost." Jack moved closer to her, relief evident on his face.

As expected, she bumped into them. "I almost got lost. This place is like a maze."

He reached over and took her hand, but Rachel's head was elsewhere. She didn't pull away and let him hold her close.

"It's okay since you are unfamiliar with this place. I almost got lost myself the first time."

"She's here. Let's go back." Brad turned and headed for their room.

A small smile curved Rachel's lips; they talked as if they came out to find her. She pretended not to know and let Jack guide her back.

The others were still at the table when they returned. Eric was now seated between Michael and Marcus, talking excitedly.

Jack and Brad quickly caught up with the discussion. Once in a while, Jack would still affectionately place food on Rachel's bowl.

Rachel furtively watched the man beside her.

She raised her chopsticks and looked at her bowl, but did not eat. Somehow, the meal in front of her was no longer appealing.

When she realized how foolish she was, she lost her appetite.

Thinking of his behavior lately, she thought they were getting along quite well. She assumed he wanted them to start over because he fell in love with her.

Yes, he did want them to start over, but not because he loved her.

The woman he loved was Celine. But suddenly, he changed his mind and chased Rachel.

'Is it because he finds me as a more suitable wife?1

For the remaining of the dinner, Rachel only pretended to eat. She was mostly toying with her food, feeling a little sad.

Women were always eager to fall in love. At this point, she had to admit it was true.

Maybe she still had a little vanity left and thought Jack was smitten with her. To her defense, she was initially vigilant with his sudden change of heart. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, she became attracted to him.

But hearing him was like a splash of cold water on her.

It was rather hypocritical, but she had also considered having a relationship with Lucas in case she never fall in love.

Maybe they were just the same, Jack also had

his own reason.

'Is he fed up with the triviality of love and decides to turn to his nominal wife instead?

Is that it?1

Jack did not miss Rachel's change in behavior. "What happened? You look unhappy." The baritone of his voice reverberated through Rachel.

She lightly moved her lips to mask her expression. "Nothing."

"Don't you like the food?"

"It's great."

Her curt replies warned him. He sensed there might be something wrong but found it improper to ask given the occasion. He pushed his anxiety on the backseat and took a mental note to ask her later.

At that moment, Brad discussed the progress of the Pearl Resort.

The project was on-going. If everything went well, the resort would be completed during the second half of the year.

They talked about business until the dinner ended at nine o’clock. Since Jack did not drink, he drove for Rachel and Eric.

Rain fell just when they were about to leave. The doorman held an umbrella and sent them to the parking lot.

Like Rachel, Eric's behavior changed. In such a short time, he had exchanged phone numbers with Michael and his friends. Rachel lamented that Eric was not as efficient when meeting girls.

Jack brought Rachel to the dinner so she could formally meet his friends.

It was his way of telling his friends that he and Celine were over and he would start anew with Rachel.

Men were constantly open and natural to change. It was always easy and casual to leave an old flame.

Rachel, on the other hand, was wondering if Jack introduced Celine to his friends before.

She could not forget what she heard, his words kept echoing inside her mind.

The more she thought of about it, the sadder she became.

She desperately wanted Jack to tell her that he fell in love with her.

As he drove, Jack could hear the beat of the rain against the windows. He turned to glance at the woman sitting beside him just as the dimmed lights of the city swept over her face. He noticed that she was not in a good mood.

"What's wrong? Are you uncomfortable?" he asked worriedly.

She shook her head, not uttering a word. She leaned against the seat and closed her eyes. Jack carefully watched her expression but found nothing awry.

The traffic light jumped to green, and he continued to drive ahead in silence.

For some reason, her mood had turned sour after she left for the washroom. 'Did something happen?1

When they reached home, Jack felt Rachel was still behaving differently. He got out of the car and trailed after her. He was hoping to spend the night under the excuse that it would rain later.

Before he could say anything, Rachel turned to him and said, "Eric is using your room now. It is too late to clean another room."

He clearly understood what she was hinting. She did not want him to stay. He would not mind if it was any other day, but tonight, Rachel was upset, and he was worried.

"Are you angry?" he asked cautiously.

"Why should I be angry?"

Rachel's voice sounded harsh. He did not know what went wrong. He rubbed his hand across his forehead and said helplessly, "I'll go back first and come back tomorrow."

"Eric is much better now. There is no need to come every day."

Jack was about to leave when he heard her. He lowered his eyes and studied her. "Are you angry with me?" He raised his eyebrows, a glimmer of light flashing through his eyes.

Rachel felt tired and could not help but frown. "No, I'm not."

'Liar! I can feel it,' thought Jack.

They stood silently and stared at one another as if they were competing. No one dared to

compromise.

While they stood unmoving, Eric turned and saw them.

"What are you doing?"

Eric's voice broke the silence. "Are you not coming in?"

Jack was the first to withdraw. He gave a meaningful look to Rachel and said, "No, thanks. I have to go. Bye."

Rachel didn't respond.

He was clueless about why she was angry. He headed for the car, but after only a couple of steps, he turned again. "Rachel,

you can tell me if there is anything wrong."

"I said there’s nothing," she replied curtly.

Eric looked at them strangely from above. He wondered why they were in the dark and not coming in.

Jack dropped his head, feeling frustrated. 'What's wrong with her? It feels like we are back to the beginning.'

But Rachel didn't say more. He sighed, "I'll go back first."

"Okay." She went into the house, leaving him alone.

He watched her retreating as he stood there abandoned. He put a hand on the back of his neck and rubbed his fingers along, sighing helplessly. Obviously, she was angry with him.

In the past, she would at least send him well wishes every time they parted. But now she only gave him the cold treatment.

Women were really difficult to understand. He got in his car and was back to wondering why she suddenly grew upset.

While driving, he reran the events during the evening but could not find any possible cues.

Whatever the reason was, she was really displeased by it.

Rachel supposed she would forget everything after a good night's sleep.

But when she saw Jack at home the following day, her mood turned for the worse again.

She realized that her attitude yesterday was too obvious. She did not want Jack seeing right through her brain and guessing what started her foul mood.

So when she saw him today, she tried hard to deliberately restrain her temper.

Rachel was applying the medicine on Eric’s wound when he entered. Eric took his shirt off and was leaning on a chair. Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

His wounds healed well, but there was some evident scarring left. Although he said it would not matter, Eric still felt conscious about it.

He asked, "Will they look awful in the future?"